Swinger
Journeyman Pro
The answer for me is Alcohol. To be honest I was one of the best (if not the best!!) social golfers of my day.
Alex, apologies. I wasn't having a go at the likes of yourself who work hard at your game.
I was talking about the golfer who does no practice and thinks because he has all the best kit, he should be able to play well and moans when he doesnt.
I spend my days with both types and believe me I'd rather spend 2 hours working with a player like yourself who tries, than 10 mins with someone I know won't lesten to a word I've said.
Bob,
I read your first paragraph whilst stifling the laughs. that could be almost any Scottish schoolboy of the late 60's early 70's. We all seem to have started off that way up here. I probably gazed out across the Forth on a sunny summer holiday and saw you playing over on the Fife side of the water
Could an answer to your question be that as we have all the gear nowadays, we've lost the ability to visualise and imagine the shot we need to play ? With a half set of clubs we could play almost any type of shot that was required. We adapted and improvised in order to get better. Nowadays you don't see that type of play. Even the Juniors at my club have better kit than I have and I consider myself a 'gear freak'
Mind you, don't think Juniors would wear those horrible black rubber Stylo shoes we used to have complete with matching kilties
Has it always been 14 clubs?
but another area in modern golf that was not there in my younger day is SSS/CSS.
I cannot be alone in playing a par 71 course - SSS69 - CSS 68 every week (good golfers recording good scores) and I therefore, standing on the first tee, know I have to beat par by three strokes to hit CSS.
In the old days my handicap would have me swagger into the club whereas I am now, due to CSS, just in the vanguard of players.
Bob, I think we should revert to handicapping off par and see the average handicap drop by at least three shots!
And I'm not talking about the elite end of the scale, I mean the average golfer who cant break 80
Has it always been 14 clubs?
When DCB started I don't think there were any rules
C'mon Bob, you're older than me so you'll remember these
Away an boil your heed.
I'm only 42
My take on why most regular golfers are not good golfers:-
- They are lazy, they profess to keeness and commitment, but neither practice nor work on their game in any way. If they do have lessons they dont practice what they have paid for.
- They are seduced by the bombardment of product offerings and brainwashed into believing that equipment really does make a difference. It doesnt. A good golfer can go round in the 70's with a half set of ladies clubs. They are gullible and believe equipment is the solution, the gullibility is partly due to it being the lazy solution. If a typical golfer took up juggling they would keep buying different juggling balls in an effort to improve, but most would not bother to learn how to actually juggle.
- They find excuses... "you need talent", "I dont have the time", "my course is hard", "its a tough game", "the wife wont let xyz". They find an excuse that attempts to mask their laziness.
- They play formats which arent conducive to improvement such as Stableford. Handicap golf encourages mediocrity, relying on a crutch to bolster ones abilities and reward poor golf is not the way forwards. Handicap protection is far too frequent.
- They believe golf is golf swing. Golf swing is about 25% of golf. Its a game. As with any game it requires strategy, tactics and a sensible approach. They dont learn to play the game (and club pro's are guilty of teaching golf swing not golf).
- They are overly optimistic about their abilities. Stick them 220yds from a protected green and out comes to 3W for the miracle shot.
Golf is tough, but any reasonably able bodied male between 15 and 50 can comfortably play to single figures on an average dificulty course. Most dont. They choose not to do so. It really is a choice not to.